1. Field of the Invention
The present patent application for industrial invention relates to a modular apparatus for prosthezitation and solidarization of dental implants.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98
The present patent application for industrial invention relates to a modular apparatus for prosthezitation and solidarization of dental implants.
The peculiarities and advantages of the present invention will be more evident after a brief description of the state-of-the-art.
Firstly, it must be noted that the term “dental prosthesis” refers to a prosthesis for rehabilitation of the masticatory function.
Such a prosthesis is composed of a bearing structure made of acrylic resin on which artificial resin teeth found on the market are mounted; the gingival profile of said prosthesis must have such a configuration to allow for patient's perfect hygiene in the implant area.
In order to fix such a prosthetic structure in the patient's mouth, metal pins with basically cylindrical shape, which are technically defined as “implants”, are screwed onto the maxillary or mandibular bone.
Then, a metal stem, which is technically defined as “stump”, is screwed onto each of said implants.
In such a context, the stems that protrude vertically from the bone are adapted to create the support structure on which said acrylic resin of the base of the multiple dental prosthesis is incorporated.
Said prosthesis is permanently fixed to said stumps by means of small screws that are engaged from up downwards into the corresponding implants, after passing through small holes obtained in the artificial teeth of said prosthesis.
Once the latter operation is carried out, the small holes obtained on the tip of the prosthesis teeth are cemented.
Based on the above general description, it must be noted that, according to said technology, the implants engaged in the bone must be mutually connected to create a more stable, compact structure, by means of thin metal rods with horizontal direction.
Finally, a further component that is used in such a context is a sort of connection (defined as “sub-stump”) positioned between each implant and its corresponding stump.
The use of said connection is necessary when the implant is engaged in the bone in oblique position, which is not compatible with the need to have the stump protrude from the bone in perfectly vertical position.
In such a circumstance the use of said connection is necessary, in view of the fact that said connection is made of two sections with different inclination.
So, the first section is directly engaged into the implant engaged in the bone in sub-vertical position, in such a way that, because of its inclination with respect to the first section, the second section provides from the implant in perfectly vertical position.
Said second section of the connection is now coupled with the lower end of the stump, in perfectly vertical position.
However, it must be noted that, in spite of its large diffusion, the aforementioned technology is impaired by some significant drawbacks.
The first of said drawbacks refers to the difficult installation of said horizontal rods that are used to connect the implants screwed onto the patient's bone; in fact, such a procedure is complicated by the need to operate in correspondence of the maxillary or mandibular bone. A further problem encountered with the traditional technology is the difficulty in ensuring perfect verticality, and consequently perfect parallelism, between the stumps that protrude from the implants that are engaged in the maxillary or mandibular bone.
DE 197 28 268 discloses a modular apparatus for solidarization of dental implants.
WO2010/031188 discloses a modular apparatus for solidarization of denial implants according to the preamble of claim 1.